Before He Ignites
by emma-rowling
Summary: Roman Reigns loves teaching at Westlake Elementary but lately he finds himself wanting more out of life: he wants an adventure. And when he discovers a motorcycle club in town, things just got a little more interesting for him. Roman's about to realise that he's got some learning to do of his own.


One

To say he wasn't in awe of Mia Hobbs would have been a lie.

As far as Roman Reigns knew, for over twenty years, he had admired the brunette who was more than the love of his life; she was his soulmate.

Literally.

Best friends since second grade then turned lovers in junior year of high school, theirs was a love story that was recollected almost every Christmas by their mothers. One of first kisses, forbidden room entries and above all true love. Both Mia and him overcame everything to get to where they were: stronger and more in love as time passed them both.

As he sipped his green tea watching Mia do some kind of a submission move on her opponent in the middle of the ring, he braced himself for the moment the bell rang. The people around him in the stadium were yelling, "Let's go, Hobbs!" and "Mia! Mia! Mia!"

The red mohawk lady beneath Mia was tapping so the referee called for the bell.

Immediately Roman bounded to his feet and clapped hard for his girlfriend.

Mia's tongue stuck out when the referee held up her hand before handing her the light heavyweight champion belt. Roman would have been lying if he hadn't been grinning like an idiot watching his long time love kiss the belt and held it up with pride.

Her supporters were stomping their feet, loud cheers that were sure to echo in Roman's ears later that night.

"How do you feel, Mia?" the interviewer asked immediately as he stepped into the ring where Mia was being hugged by her coach Kurt Angle and her training mates. "You've worked hard for this-"

"Roman, babe! This one's for you, baby!" Mia boomed. "We've come a long way and we did it!"

Fuck.

The waterworks were bound to come now.

"Seriously," Mia continued, panting. "I could not have come this far without Roman. He's supported me in everything I've done and he worries like the care bear that he is and is my cheerleader, best friend and love. My coach, Kurt for kicking my ass every single time and my… Marty! Where are you?!"

Marty Scurll, one of Mia's closest training mates, came up front and hugged Mia again.

"This buster here. My best friend, Xavier… there's so many people I'm sure I missed out. My fans…. Oh my gosh! You guys are the best! The absolute best fans I could ever ask for! Thank you! Roman, let's celebrate!"

More cheers from the audience and people in the ring who were hugging. Kurt popped open a champagne.

From the stands, Roman sniffled.

He waited in the car for his girlfriend who was still being stopped for autographs. Roman glanced at the clock.

Twelve fifteen.

It was a good thing it was Sunday. Enough time for him to sleep in, cuddling with Mia in their home.

Best way to spend his day.

"Sorry, babe," Mia apologised when she opened the car door and slid in, throwing her gym bag at the back seat before leaning over for a quick kiss. "Hi."

"Hi," Roman grinned.

Mia shut the door. "We did it, babe!"

"Yes, we did."

"We're going to celebrate all through the night, right?"

"Baby girl, you know it. Put your seatbelt on."

"Yes, Dad."

Mia dozed off during the ride, clearly exhausted. Maybe sex would have to wait.

Oh how wrong Roman was on that one.

They couldn't keep their hands and lips off one another when they reached their home, clothes flying everywhere. Mia's passionate cries and pleas got to him as Roman drilled into her on their couch, coming hard into his darling who had found her pleasure before him.

"Best celebration ever," Mia declared, running her hand through Roman's raven locks eyes shining with love.

Roman smiled at the sight beneath him. "Baby, you know it."

* * *

When morning came about, Roman stirred up because of the sun rays shining upon his face. So much about sleeping in.

Mia's back was facing him, still sound asleep. The Samoan man placed an arm around her waist, enjoying the feel of their bodies pressed together intimately. Sometimes when Roman woke up, they ended up on opposite ends of the bed; sometimes, Mia would be clinging onto him like a koala bear.

But there were moments like this that he truly cherished… where he got to enjoy Mia this way.

They only had today to spend what little time they could together. It'd be back to reality tomorrow with training for Mia and school for Roman. The Samoan man was happy with his job at Westlake Elementary as an English teacher where he taught fifth and sixth graders.

As it was the school was offering the position as Head of the English department but Roman was hesitant. It wasn't because he thought he wasn't qualified; it was because he didn't want the additional responsibilities.

Had he told anyone this, they'd look at him twice because Roman was always a hard worker, a responsible man.

But lately, he couldn't help but wonder if he had been missing out on life.

Unlike Mia who always grabbed life by the horns, Roman tended to sway along, often folding his hands and wait patiently while he planned again with whatever curveball that was thrown his way.

Sure he could be tough when he needed to be. But he was nowhere near the level of recklessness Mia had nor did he have that devil-may-care attitude too.

A good example of that was their vacation two months ago when Mia and him went to Key West for a couple of days. His girlfriend had wanted to go skydiving and parasailing… both of which Roman sat out. He spent his time to going on the Conch Tour Train to sightsee the old town areas including Hemingway House and Duval Street before going to the Key West Botanical Garden.

Mia and him had caught up at the hotel where they showered together before exploring other parts of the island.

They had always been different but it was what brought them together when they were young.

Roman would bet his last dollar that Mia had no regrets with all the crazy things she'd ever done.

"Morning," Mia greeted him a kiss to his cheek. "Always a wonderful sight to wake up to."

"I could say the same about you."

"Mmmm." Mia nestled herself in Roman's arms.

"What do you want to do?"

"I'd love to go out for breakfast and maybe a movie. We haven't done that in a while."

"Whatever you want, baby girl."

"What I want right now is you."

"You've got it."

Roman crawled out from bed before carrying his darling in his arms bridal style. "Where are we going?" Mia asked.

"Shower. Sex and a nice soap down."

* * *

Breakfast was at Eggs Galore where they chose the booth at the far end.

Mia ordered an egg sampler and black coffee while Roman ordered Eggs Benedict with a side of grilled mushrooms and chai latte. Her stomach rumbled. Okay maybe she was hungrier than she thought.

"So you haven't spoken much about that promotion…" the MMA champion started when she noticed Roman rubbing the salt shaker between the palm of his hands. "You've made a decision yet?"

"Well, honestly, I'm not keen," Roman admitted, his grey eyes meeting Mia's. "I don't know, Mia. I love what I do but something's missing in my life."

"Like what?"

"I don't know. Adventure?"

"Something thrill seeking?"

"Nothing too crazy."

"Why don't you pick up a hobby or something to fill the void?"

Her boyfriend seemed thoughtful. "Like what?"

"Something you love. Or if it's an adventure you want, try something you've never done before. Skydiving. Boxing. River rafting."

"I'll think about it."

Roman was the mellow one between the two of them; something Mia appreciated a lot though she knew that he could be aggressive when he needed to be.

Especially when it came to protecting her.

The waiter placed their orders in front of them before hurrying off to another table, where there were about four of motorcyclists who had just sat down, grabbing the tent card from the corner of the table.

Another two men joined them, also motorcyclists.

This town had a motorcycle club? "I had no idea that Westlake had a motorcycle club," Mia said softly to Roman who followed her gaze. "Where do you think-"

"I recognise one of them," Roman replied, leaning back against his seat. "That's one of my kids' parents. I met him at the parent-teacher conference."

Mia took another glance at the table. "Which one?"

"The one with the skulls bandana."

The person in question happened to be a Polynesian man laughing with a blond beside him. "Looks quite similar to Tama."

"Close enough. They're adopted brothers."

Mia grinned at him; small world. "No way."

"Yes way. He said he heard about me from Tama. I had no idea that he's part of a club like this." Roman cut a bite sized piece of his English muffin, bacon and egg. "What do motorcycle clubs do though?"

"I'm not sure. All I know is that there are mainstream ones or outlaws." Mia poured sugar into her coffee. "So let's catch Revenge of the Killer Bees."

"And that's not scary to you? Killer bees?"

"Beats the demonic nuns."

"I don't see what's wrong with our horror movie nights. I mean you love clinging onto me."

"Well… yeah for the right reasons." Well not really, Mia admitted to herself quietly. She'd cling to Roman for no reason. "So Killer Bees?"

Roman nodded. "Sure. But you know that we'll be watching Pet's Cemetery tonight then."

"No problem. I'll just cling onto you then."

* * *

"You know, Iron Maiden has a song called Fear of the Dark," Roman informed Mia who was hiding her face behind his right shoulder during the middle of Pet Cemetery at about eleven later that night. "It's one of my favorites."

"You are a horrible man!" Mia declared, voice muffled.

" _Fear of the dark_ ," Roman started to sing. " _Fear of the dark. I have the fear that something's always near. Fear of the dark-_ "

"Roman!"

With a smile, Roman traced his fingers on the back of Mia's neck lightly, slowly. " _Have you run your fingers down the wall; have you felt the back of your neck skin crawl-_ "

"I'm going to bed."

When Mia was only halfway up, Roman pulled her into his arms and melded his lips with hers.

Clearly Mia wasn't as mad as Roman had thought when she kissed him back. Still clinging onto him tight. "So how about we adjourn to the bedroom as I had just said?" his girlfriend suggested.

"Or I could just do you through this couch."

"Roman, I don't want stains on it."

That comment alone made Roman chuckle. "Mia, since when do you care about stains?"

"I don't know. I just do."

"You're the more carefree one between the both of us."

"Well, yeah. But still-"

"And I always wondered how you could breeze through life like that. How is it that you don't worry about the consequences or aftermaths?"

"Because I have you."

Roman sighed, pulling her in then. "You do."

"I have you. I know that I'll be okay because you're always there for me. So I have nothing to fear on that. You're my steady rock, Roman. I'd be lost without you."

"Me too, baby girl. You don't have to worry. I'm here to stay."

* * *

Roman didn't even know that they had fallen asleep on the couch until the alarm on his phone went off. His eyes flew open immediately where he found a sleeping Mia comfortably snuggled against him.

Pressing a kiss to her forehead, Roman gently disentangled his girlfriend's arms from his waist before making his way to the bathroom to get ready for the day.

Mondays were a drag, he thought. Maybe he should take Mia's advice and get a hobby to find something to look forward to.

But what?

Reading? He did those a lot.

Baking? Well, yeah from time to time.

It had to be something exciting. Something to get his adrenaline coursing. Well, he could try skydiving like Mia had but what was the point? It wasn't something he could do often.

Snowboarding? Hunting? Wakeboarding?

"Roman?"

The sound of Mia's voice interrupted his brainstorming. "In here, baby girl."

The bathroom door cracked open and Mia stuck her head in. "I can't believe we fell asleep on the couch," his green eyed beauty yawned. "What am I going to do without you around today?"

"No training today?"

"Just an interview I think." Mia kicked her shorts aside before standing beside him underneath the shower. "But no training."

"Your bruises are showing…" Roman pressed soft kisses on each one. "Oh Mia… I wish I could kiss all your bruises away."

"Roman, if you don't stop, we'll end up banging on the floor."

"I have no complaints." Roman planted barely there kisses on her neck. "So you shouldn't too."

"But your job-"

Roman claimed her lips before she could say another word. "You know I always set the alarm earlier."

"Take me!" Mia clung onto him again.

Maybe Monday wouldn't be so bad after all.

When he reached school - Mia had sent him - he found Tanga Roa, his old classmate's adopted brother, dropping his son off at the school porch.

His eyes met Roman's when he turned. "Mr Reigns,' he greeted with a wide smile when he had stepped out of his BMW to wave one more time. "How are you? Saw you at the diner last morning with your girlfriend."

"Yeah. Mia and I had a whole day planned." Roman glanced at the car. "No motorcycle today?"

"Nah. That's only for weekends. I'm part of The Scorpions. After the band which is how this club even became friends in the first place."

"I love the Scorpions," Roman revealed. "I have all their albums."

"Yeah? Maybe you'd like to hang out with us sometime. We're always looking to make new friends."

"That'd be nice."

"We're a motorcycle club." Tanga smiled. "I'll call you and we can set up a date. Well not a real one. I don't want your girlfriend beating me up."

Roman smiled fondly at the mention of Mia. "Mia's harmless for the most part."

"Not from what I've heard from Tama." Tanga nodded at him. "See you soon, Mr Reigns."

"See you."

Roman stared after him as he watched him drive off.

New friends? He could use some.

Maybe even learn how to ride a bike.


End file.
